THE APPLICANT: Malaz Boustani, MD, MPH is a geriatric physician-scientist and Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics in the Department of Medicine at Indiana University. He is a scientist at the Regenstrief Institute, Inc and the Center for Aging Research. He is a former AFAR/Hartford and Clinical Research Curriculum (K30) scholar. THE IMMEDIATE OBJECTIVES: l)-Develop the skills to become an independent geriatric health services researcher including skills in research design, implementation, and dissemination; 2)-Develop the skills to effect organizational change in health care systems; 3)-Improve skills in grant writing; 4)-Obtain basic knowledge and skills in medical informatics to serve as a foundation for applying information technology in support of quality improvement; 5)-Cultivate a collaborative relationship with the faculty in medical informatics; 6)-Obtain pilot data for designing a clinical trial (the future R01 application) of an enhanced hospital system intervention to improve outcomes of older adults with cognitive impairment; 7)-Learn how to translate research findings into health care policy that will improve the care of older adults with dementia. 8)-Begin to design the infrastructure that would support quality improvement in dementia care across the continuum of care by integrating hospital-based care with primary care, home care, and long-term care. THE RESEARCH CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLAN: Proposes course work, a research project, and mentored activities provided by a panel of mentors with complimentary research skills. The mentoring team includes an expert in developing and testing health systems innovations for older adults (Dr. Callahan); a leader in conducting international comparative studies of dementia (Dr. Hendrie); and an expert in implementing geriatric care models in a hospital setting (Dr.Counsell). THE LONG-TERM OBJECTIVES: l)-Improve the care of older adults with dementia through research on new models of care. This research will decrease the burden of dementia for patients, families, and society. 2)-Build a research laboratory that will support research on dementia care across the continuum of care, support the development of the next generation of researchers, and provide consistent contributions to the world's knowledge on dementia care.